Zakinthos

Our first real Greek island and one that we had to be taken to by small boat as the harbour is too small for the Oriana to enter.  The clocks went forward again last night so it was a pretty tired pair that dragged themselves out of bed at 7.00am to go onto our small deck and take pictures as we entered the outer harbour and dropped anchor.  As you can see from the photos Ted came too on this trip and he seems to be enjoying himself although he hasn’t made quite so many friends as last time.  We breakfasted in Al Fresco (can’t say the prunes are working terribly well, but I will persist with them) before making our way down the stairs to the Theatre where we got our boarding sticker for the first boat going ashore.  It didn’t help very much as it turned out for although we got to the quayside before lots of the others, we had to wait for an elderly man and his wife who were on the wrong coach and they had great difficulty getting him up the steps of our coach.  I don’t mean to sound unkind but why do people with severe disabilities book themselves onto tours which require lots of steps and walking?  The brochures are pretty clear about what degree of mobility may be required but some people still persist in trying to stretch themselves too far and then complain about it.  While I am on a rant the other thing that pi***s me off is people who rush into the theatre to grab an end of the row seat and them complain every time that they have to get up to let people in who are sitting further along the row.  It’s stupid; but we did see one comeuppance today when about 4 people managed to get on the trot boat, seated themselves in the open area closest to the exit so that they could be first off and then got absolutely soaked through with the spray which bounced through the gap – that’l larn ‘em as my Gran would have said.  But I am getting ahead of myself here….

Our coach guide was a Greek lady who had lived in both California and Chicago for 30 years and then married a guy from Zakinthos so she came back to the island to live.  She was excellent and allowed us to get off and take pictures at several stops around the island, including some inside the cathedral that was the only building left standing following a 6.7 level earthquake in August 1953.  I decided that we needed to light a candle for all those that lost their lives in Japan so duly purchased one and watched it burn before going to look at the sacred relics of the island’s patron saint. Alexandria then took us to a pottery where we watched the owner make a variety of items including the traditional pomegranate that is ceremoniously broken during a wedding reception to ensure lots of healthy children in the new family.  We bought a small bowl with a lid that was signed by the potter and it could be useful for sugar or something similar.  At the high point of the island we found a local ice cream man so Hilary and I plus a couple of others sneaked a quick sugar cone (not quite Lappert’s standard but pretty good and locally made.  Then it was to a hotel for a quick free cup of coffee and a biscuit before it was shopping time.

Zakinthos is strictly for tourists nowadays and the town consists of two main squares and two main roads lined with gift shops.  A speciality of the island is nougat with almonds, so of course we are bringing back some of that – then of course postcards and a fridge magnet (we will need a bigger fridge soon) and finally a successful hunt for a bolero jacket that Hilary can use in the evenings when it gets cool – and believe me it does!  The coach took us the few hundred yards down the jetty where we queued up for the trot boat (much pushing and shoving, gotta get there first) and we got on the second boat to leave which is where the fun started.  Our ride into harbour from the Oriana was as calm as a mill pond but going back the wind had picked up and it was a roller coaster of a ride, I noticed a few apprehensive faces as it bounced up and down but apart from the stupid few who had insisted on being near the exit and got soaked in the process, it really was quite good fun.   We think that Julian would have needed all his skill to get the boat alongside and moored against the Oriana’s hull but that he would probably have enjoyed it too.

Back on board, a quick nice cup of tea and back up to the Riviera deck for a swim for Sam and a relaxing read for Hilary.  There was a breeze on board though and the warmest places were definitely the pool and the hot tub, both of which I enjoyed all on my own for a good 45 minutes.  A shower, quick change, some cheese and biscuits and a bowl of fruit – plus of course another nice cup of tea and it was back inside into the warm.  I came up to blog while Hilary went off to do the one and only laundry session of the trip (we hope), not sure if she was successful or not but I will find out later on.

Tonight our Headliner’s show has been postponed for 15 minutes as something else has been planned for the sailaway so it will be a somewhat later night for us tonight but at least we don’t have to put the damn clocks forward again, but we do have to be up early ready for our full day walking up and down to the Acropolis and around the Plaka.  Let’s hope that it is a bit warmer.

OK I am going to post this with a few more photos, hope that you enjoy them…